Same-Sex Couple Who Were Refused License Wins Federal Court Decision

It was two years ago, just two weeks after the Supreme Court ruled same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry, whenÂ David Ermold and David Moore tried to obtain a marriage license.Â July 7, 2015.Â They were refused by RowanÂ County, Kentucky clerk Kim Davis, who said she was acting “under God’s authority.”

The couple’s viral video kicked off a nationwide discussion pitting religious right activists against those who support the constitutional guarantee of equal protection and the freedom to marry.Â

David Ermold and David Moore, known as â€œthe Davids,â€Â later that year obtained a marriage license, elsewhere, and were finally wed.

On FridayÂ they won another victory. TheyÂ will not be forced to pay legal fees of $225,000, caused when Davis repeatedly refused to issue them a marriage license. The Rowan County clerk had claimed doing so would violate her deeply held religious beliefs.

Judge Bunning “rejected holding Davis personally responsible for the debt because, he said, the couples prevailed against her in her ‘official capacity’ as a public official,” the paper adds.

â€œDavis represented the Commonwealth of Kentucky when she refused to issue marriage licenses to legally eligible couples. The buck stops there,â€ Bunning wrote Friday morning.Â

â€œThe plaintiffs prevailed by every measure of victory,â€ Bunning wrote. â€œPlaintiffs obtained marriage licenses that could not be revoked. And two of the plaintiff-couples married on those licenses. That is enduring relief. There is nothing more the court could do.â€

Davis’ attorneys atÂ Liberty Counsel, an anti-gay hate group, will appeal Judge Bunning’s decision, even though their client is not responsible for the fees.

â€œIt is unfortunate that Kentucky taxpayers will likely bear the financial burden of the unlawful actions and litigation strategies of an elected official, but those same voters are free to take that information into account at the ballot box,â€Â William Sharp, legal director for the ACLU of Kentucky, told Kentucky.com.

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The witness “notified senators and the F.B.I. about this account, but the F.B.I. did not investigate.”

The Times also took a deep dive into the public allegations made by Deborah Ramirez during the Kavanaugh hearings.

“She and some classmates had been drinking heavily when, she says, a freshman named Brett Kavanaugh pulled down his pants and thrust his penis at her, prompting her to swat it away and inadvertently touch it,” which had been previously reported.

“During his Senate testimony, Mr. Kavanaugh said that if the incident Ms. Ramirez described had occurred, it would have been ‘the talk of campus.’ Our reporting suggests that it was,” the Times reveals.

“At least seven people, including Ms. Ramirez’s mother, heard about the Yale incident long before Mr. Kavanaugh was a federal judge. Two of those people were classmates who learned of it just days after the party occurred, suggesting that it was discussed among students at the time.”

The Times reports the FBI did not investigate, despite the Kavanaugh hearings having been put on hold, supposedly to investigate allegations of sexual misconduct, including alleged sexual violence.

“Ms. Ramirez’s legal team gave the F.B.I. a list of at least 25 individuals who may have had corroborating evidence. But the bureau — in its supplemental background investigation — interviewed none of them, though we learned many of these potential witnesses tried in vain to reach the F.B.I. on their own,” the Times continues.

Two F.B.I. agents interviewed Ms. Ramirez, telling her that they found her “credible.” But the Republican-controlled Senate had imposed strict limits on the investigation. “‘We have to wait to get authorization to do anything else,’” Bill Pittard, one of Ms. Ramirez’s lawyers, recalled the agents saying. “It was almost a little apologetic.”

The Times chose to hide this reporting in its opinion pages as “news analysis.”

This bombshell reporting comes on the heels of another bombshell: Attorney General Bill Barr is giving a prestigious Dept. of Justice award, generally reserved for agents whose investigations uncover, say, attempted terrorism. This year the recipients will be those FBI agents who, as the Times reported separately, worked “to support the nomination” of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

Kavanaugh was confirmed by a 50-48 vote in the Senate.

This is a breaking news and developing story. Details may change. This story will be updated, and NCRM will likely publish follow-up stories on this news. Stay tuned and refresh for updates.

Donald Trump’s Twitter attack on MSNBC host Joy Reid set off a round of criticism of the president, with some noting that the president has once again attacked a woman of color.

On Saturday morning the president smeared the “AM Joy” host and professed to know nothing about her, yet his tweet seemed to show that he is very aware of her work covering him to say nothing of her book about him.

The president wrote, “Who the hell is Joy-Ann Reid? Never met her, she knows ZERO about me, has NO talent, and truly doesn’t have the “it” factor needed for success in showbiz. Had a bad reputation, and now works for the Comcast/NBC losers making up phony stories about me. Low Ratings. Fake News!”

You can see Trump’s tweet and the responses to him below:

Who the hell is Joy-Ann Reid? Never met her, she knows ZERO about me, has NO talent, and truly doesn’t have the “it” factor needed for success in showbiz. Had a bad reputation, and now works for the Comcast/NBC losers making up phony stories about me. Low Ratings. Fake News!

Sorry, but @JoyAnnReid has got your number and when it comes to talent and reputations…a sexual assaulting, scam-running, fake reality show hosting, child-raping fraud should keep his mouth shut. #reiders

You know exactly who @JoyAnnReid is, but to refresh your memory, she is an award winning journalist and cable TV news host who brings in huge ratings. I'd say that's the 'it' factor you say she doesn't have. Oh, she's also black. Is that what you mean? You are a repugnant racist

Joy-Ann Reid is a strong black woman who already endured massive online bullying multiple times and survived it all. She is resilient. This latest attack from the President of the United States will not faze her in the least and in fact will boost her profile on MSNBC.

In a stunning move iAttorney General Bill Barr’s Dept of Justice late Friday afternoon filed a 40-page brief with a federal court, declaring the House Judiciary Committee’s impeachment inquiry is not an impeachment inquiry, in an attempt to block release of files related to the Mueller probe.

It appears to be an unprecedented act, in which the top law enforcement agency is attempting to block Congress from carrying out its constitutional duties.

The DOJ is attempting to block the release of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s grand jury files, according to Politico. House Democrats have frequently said they cannot make an impeachment decision without the underlying materials from Mueller’s exhaustive investigation.

This is really bad for House Dems. DOJ has already seized on their inconsistent and head-spinning messaging on impeachment to argue that they should not be granted access to Mueller’s grand-jury files—bc the cornerstone of their argument is that they’re in an impeachment probe. https://t.co/QZEs4zlaw9